Battarix – Energy In Your Wallet Review

I was recently approached by Battarix and asked to check out their product.  Battarix makes emergency batteries for mobile devices.  They were kind enough to send me four of them for my review.

My first impressions of the batteries were quite positive.  They were very small and compact.  They are just about the length and width of a standard credit card and have the thickness of two or three credit cards stacked on top of each other.  The battery comes with a built-in micro-USB cable and came with several micro-USB to Lightning adapters.  My Nexus 6P I used for testing uses USB-C, luckily I had an adapter of my own, that I was able to use.

The Battarix battery comes with a 750mAh charge.  Similar to other battery banks you plug it in to your mobile device and it begins the process of charging the device.  In my testing I used my Nexus 6P, which comes with a 3,450mAh battery.  In one of my tests I ran it down to 2% of battery life and plugged the Battarix in.  It immediately registered that my device was charging and took me from 2$ to 3%.  I then put my device in airplane mode and left it alone to see how full it would charge my phone.  When I came back two hours later my 6P was at 19% and no longer showed that it was charging.

When I first received my pack of Battarix, I reviewed the materials that came with them.  On the front of the instructions it indicates that each Battarix will give your device an extra three hours of talk time.  However, inside the directions it says that Battarix will give your phone an extra hour of talk time.  I reached out to my friends at Battarix and asked them for clarification.  They indicated that it is meant to give the three hours and not the one.  In my use of the battery I found that it was closer to an hour and a half of talk time.  Now, that could be due to several factors, it could be that I was in a poor signal area, it could be that my Nexus 6P is a battery hog, as well as any other variable factors.

One area that was a little disappointing was the charging speeds of the Battarix.  In theory if I’m using the device as intended I would be in an emergency and wouldn’t have time to wait for my device to charge.  In looking at my 6P’s battery life history it was using battery life faster than the Battarix was charging.  If I’m in that emergency and get to 2% battery life I would want something that can charge my phone quickly so I don’t have to worry about getting cut off in the middle of an important call.

One other aspect of the Battarix that I am not overly fond of is their disposable nature.  Battarix are not rechargeable and can only be used once.  In many areas it is illegal to throw batteries away, even when they are fully discharged.  Lithium Ion batteries are generally considered non-hazardous but if you use them in your area you should make sure you dispose of them correctly.

It is an awesome concept device and I can see its uses but in the long run I believe there are other more sustainable options that work better with my personal needs.  I was impressed with the form factor and the quality of the device as a whole but there weren’t enough perks to the device to have it replace my existing battery banks.

If you would like to order some Battarix devices for yourself, you can find them on Amazon with the links below.

Single Battarix: http://amzn.to/2aDhvWg ($7.49)
3-Pack Battarix: http://amzn.to/2aCZhRQ ($17.99)
10-Pack Battarix: http://amzn.to/2auTMlh ($49.99)